SOCHI, Russia — Report by Race Chaser Online Managing Editor Jacob Seelman — Clive Mason/Getty Images Europe photo —
There was no question as to who the team to beat is once again in Formula One competition, as Mercedes teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton led Friday’s pair of free practice sessions at the Sochi Autodrom in Russia.
Rosberg, who has opened the 2016 season with three victories in three races and carries a string of six-consecutive Grands Prix wins dating back to last fall, used the Pirelli super-soft tires to set a blistering clip of 1:38.127 around the 5.848 kilometer street circuit that outdistanced Hamilton by nearly three-quarters of a second.
“It’s been a solid start to the weekend. It’s difficult to get it right at this track, as there’s only a small window where the tires work perfectly and a lot of places where you can easily make mistakes,” said Rosberg. “The car felt good on a quick lap this morning and again on the longer runs this afternoon, so that’s very encouraging. It’s great to back here in Russia and I very much look forward to the rest of the weekend.”
The Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen trailed the two Mercedes in FP1, slotting in third and fourth respectively, but the results were far and away better than expected after Raikkonen battled a DRS issue early on. The Williams entry of Felipe Massa rounded out the top five in the opening session.
While Hamilton was second to Rosberg in the morning round, he was not to be outdone. The two-time defending World Champion stole the spotlight in session two after setting a fast lap of 1:37.583 that proved to be the fastest lap all weekend-to-date.
“It’s good to be back in the car after what’s felt like a pretty long wait since China,” Hamilton said. “It’s been a constructive day to start the weekend, too. We got through most of our program except one last little bit at the end as some of my tires were flat-spotted but no big drama there. I think we’re looking strong here – but we need to keep working hard if we are to try and stay ahead of the Ferraris. They look like they might be another step closer this weekend. We’ve got a few things to look at to make sure we perfect the setup for qualifying, so we shall see how it goes.”
The Ferraris did indeed close ground during the later session, with four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel splitting the two Silver Arrows after a lap of 1:38.235 that slotted him third overall on the day and second to Hamilton in FP2.
However, he was only able to complete 10 laps before coming to a halt with an apparent electrical problem during a mock qualification attempt.
“It is a shame that we had the problem, because now we are lacking some laps in the long runs on race trim, which would have allowed us to see how competitive we are (against Mercedes),” Vettel admitted. “But Kimi did the homework for the team, so it is not too bad.”
“Here in Russia we know roughly what to expect. I think we can still learn a lot from what other people did. In qualifying trim, we still have some stuff to improve, but I think the car was getting better though. The track was quite dirty in the morning and then during the day it came more towards us. I felt happier as the day continued … so we will see where we stand tomorrow morning when we have another practice session.”
Ferrari has used a portion of their in-season engine tokens ahead of Sunday’s Russian Grand Prix, in hopes that improvements to their internal combustion engine will allow them to do battle with Mercedes for the upcoming stretch of races.
Rosberg, Raikkonen and the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo were the balance of the top five in second practice.
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network.
Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 22-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: speed77radio@gmail.com
Follow on Twitter: @Speed77Radio or @JacobSeelman77
Email Race Chaser Online: news@racechaseronline.com
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